San Jose mayor and council race money pouring in -- what did everyone raise?

SAN JOSE -- The opening fundraising period for the coming election to determine the balance of power at City Hall was a one-man show.

San Jose Councilman Sam Liccardo, who is running for mayor, raised $513,152 during the first campaign contribution cycle that ran from Dec. 5 to 31, dwarfing those of the other mayoral candidates and all the contenders running for City Council seats.

The 22 other candidates running for mayor and five council seats who met Friday evening's reporting deadline raised $655,854 -- combined.

The hundreds of papers that candidates filed offered the first glimpse into whom the serious candidates are and who has some catching up to do.

Form left, Santa Clara County Supervisor Dave Cortese, San Jose Vice Mayor Madison Nguyen, and San Jose Council Members Sam Liccardo and Rose Herrera listen as Council Member Pierluigi Oliverio speaks during the first San Jose mayoral debate of 2014, Jan. 16, 2014.
(LiPo Ching/Bay Area News Group)

The bulk of the campaign cash will trickle in during the coming months for the June 3 primary, when candidates can win their races outright by securing more than 50 percent of the vote. Otherwise, the top two candidates in each contest square off in the November election.

Up for grabs are the seats belonging to four termed-out officials: Mayor Chuck Reed, Vice Mayor Madison Nguyen, Councilmen Pete Constant and Liccardo. Councilmen Don Rocha and Xavier Campos also are running for re-election.

In the headlining race for mayor, the top candidates raised an impressive amount of cash. Behind Liccardo's pace-setting haul, Santa Clara County Supervisor Dave Cortese took in about $175,000 and Nguyen raised more than $167,000.

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Consider that during the last competitive mayor's race in 2006, the eventual winner -- Reed -- raised less than $105,000 in the opening fundraising period.

Bringing up the rear were two other council members: Rose Herrera, at $50,000, and Pierluigi Oliverio, who loaned himself $10,000 and didn't start fundraising until after the first reporting period closed.

Liccardo's war chest is especially impressive given that the mayoral campaign contribution limit in San Jose is $1,100 per person (it's $500 for council races). In all, about 1,000 people donated to him -- from homemakers to local business leaders to public officials, and about half were from outside San Jose.

Among Liccardo's donors: A's owner Lew Wolff, who is trying to bring the team to San Jose, San Francisco Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, recently retired ex-San Jose City Manager Deb Figone and former Mayors Susan Hammer and Tom McEnery.

"The primary election isn't until June, but San Joseans are already voting with their pocketbooks to move our city forward," Liccardo said.

Cortese, the runner-up, raised money mostly from his expected labor allies: union workers, police and what seemed like half the San Jose Fire Department.

Nguyen took in a bulk of her money from Vietnamese and Asian donors -- about 10 percent of contributors had the common Asian last name of "Nguyen."

Among the council races, the west San Jose District 1 and downtown District 3 races are the most competitive early.

In District 1, Assemblyman Paul Fong, who moved from Cupertino to San Jose to run in the race, had raised $28,865. He had held a fundraising dinner in Cupertino. Former Apple manager Charles "Chappie" Jones, who's already picked up Reed's endorsement, leads with $31,365.

Downtown community leader Don Gagliardi raced to an early lead in the District 3 race, netting $36,333 -- the most of any council candidate so far, relying mostly on a large loan to himself and donations from local businesses. His three closest competitors have nearly reeled in a combined $50,000, however.

In the east side District 5 race, both Campos and challenger Magdalena Carrasco -- an East Side Union High school board member who narrowly lost the seat four years ago after an illegal mailer scandal tied to Campos' campaign -- were about tied at less than $9,000 apiece.

Leading the central San Jose District 7 cash race is Van Le, another east side union board member, with $21,042.